Ryan Dilbert's 10-Count: WWE SmackDown Building Hype Around Shinsuke Nakamura

1. Electricity Growing Around The King of Strong Style

WWE SmackDown has laid out the red carpet for Shinsuke Nakamura and allowed him to slowly saunter his way down it.

A patient pace in introducing the two-time NXT champion has been unsatisfying to a degree, but it has created a fascinating aura around him. Anticipation has built for his first bout for the blue brand. And Nakamura has come out of this process feeling like a special attraction so far.

His SmackDown debut came two days after WrestleMania 33.

Nakamura strode into the ring. He did his usual rockstar entrance and little else.

The King of Strong Style has barely said a word since. And he has yet to step into the ring for official action.

Fans are seeing only glimpses of the Japanese star.

His interactions with his first rival, Dolph Ziggler, have been brief. Nakamura chased away The Showoff after their first meeting. He then suplexed him after a confrontation where Ziggler did all the talking.

And rather than bring Nakamura to center stage again afterward, WWE chose to highlight Ziggler instead. The heel talked about Nakamura with jealousy dripping from his lips, pretending his new rival is no big deal.

When The King of Strong Style hasn't appeared on the show, he is brought up often and showcased via video package.

SmackDown has presented Nakamura as mysterious, a figure on the fringe poised to enter the fray.

He won't do so until the Backlash pay-per-view on May 21—WWE has chosen to delay Nakamura's debut until then.

The company has hyped that contest wholeheartedly, too.

Nakamura's debut has been a key selling point for the show. He's on the Backlash poster and featured prominently on WWE social media.

The approach has worked to increase excitement about what's ahead for him.

It's worked. Hall of Fame announcer Jim Ross wrote on his blog: "Anxious to see the pending evolution of Shinsuke Nakamura on SD Live, especially when he gets into a serious, title-oriented storyline."

Ross isn't the only one. These samplings of Nakamura have surely made many a fan hungry to see more.

On such an overloaded calendar with so many hours of programming each week, it's easy to be overexposed. It doesn't take long to go from the newest thing to a stale act in some eyes.

That won't be happening to Nakamura anytime soon at this rate.

2. The Elusive Crown

Kevin Owens is again the United States champion after defeating Chris Jericho on Tuesday night. Enjoy it while it lasts. The title's recent history suggests he'll be sans gold before long.

The championship has changed hands three times during this feud alone.

KO dethroned Jericho at WrestleMania. Y2J reclaimed the crown on Sunday's Payback PPV. Days later, Owens won it back on SmackDown.

That amount of title movement isn't unique to these rivals:

Champion	Dates of Reign	Days of Reign
Alberto Del Rio	10/25/15-1/11/16	79
Kalisto	1/11/16-1/14/16	3
Alberto Del Rio	1/14/16-1/24/16	10
Kalisto	1/24/16-5/22/16	119
Rusev	5/22/16-9/25/16	127
Roman Reigns	9/25/16-1/9/17	107
Chris Jericho	1/9/17-4/2/17	83
Kevin Owens	4/2/17-4/30/17	29
Chris Jericho	4/30/17-5/217	3

After John Cena's 2015 reign, only three Superstars have held the title for more than 100 days, and no one surpassed the 130-day mark.

It's no coincidence that Cena's reign remains the most memorable in the last few years.

3. Throwback Video of the Week: Zack Ryder

Believe it or not, it's been 10 years since Zack Ryder first appeared on WWE TV.

Ryder was still known as Brett Major then and teamed with his "brother" Brian Major (now Curt Hawkins). The babyface team upset Marcus Cor Von and Matt Striker on ECW in their debut: 

Who could have known back then that Ryder would become a cult favorite and stick around for a full decade? Say what you will about Long Island Iced-Z being underused or underrated, he has won more titles than anyone else from that clip by miles.

4. Gulak's Catch-22

The element of Drew Gulak's character that has helped him stand out among the cruiserweight division promises to be the same thing that holds him back.

The bruiser from Philadelphia has campaigned against 205 Live's high-flying offense. He has rallied against the dangers of that style, employing a plodding, throwback attack instead.

Gulak now has some depth to his persona and a driving force for his promos, but a part of his act is to be unexciting in the ring. On Tuesday's 205 Live, he held Mustafa Ali in a side headlock for a long while as announcer Tom Phillips bemoaned the lack of action.

A part of his gimmick is to not put on great matches. And regardless of how well he plays a no-fun curmudgeon, he'll have a hard time winning over fans, heel or not, trying to be dull between the ropes on purpose.

The key will be to replace speed and aerial moves with more hammering strikes, not rest holds.

5. When WWE Invades the Draft

Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Drew Pearson transformed a draft selection into a WWE-style promo:

In front of a frenzied Philadelphia crowd, Pearson poked and prodded the fans. He raised his voice. He welcomed the hate that filled the arena.

If Pearson has some free time on his hands, he should consider heading to Raw or SmackDown and lending his heat-generating skills to a Superstar as a manager.

6. Juice Reborn

There are few things in wrestling as powerful as watching someone reinvent themselves after a promotion has given up on them.

As CJ Parker at NXT, Joseph Robinson hit a wall. WWE's developmental brand clearly didn't think highly of him. Spotlight was rare; as were wins. Rather than give up, the Illinois native decided to travel east in 2015.

He left for New Japan Pro Wrestling, rechristened himself Juice Robinson and has since produced the best stretch of his career.

Given the biggest opportunity of his life, Robinson came through in a big way. He looked excellent in an IWGP Intercontinental Championship match against Tetsuya Naito at NJPW's Wrestling Toyonokuni 2017 this weekend.

This was not the same man we saw spinning his wheels at NXT. This wasn't the same career midcarder that stood on a low rung for the WWE brand. Robinson has grown and tapped into a fire inside himself that didn't get enough oxygen in the past.

That should be an inspiration to everyone.

7. The Truth About The Golden Truth's W-L Record

R-Truth and Goldust didn't get the title shot they requested, and with good reason. Raw general manager Kurt Angle told The Golden Truth it didn't have the record to qualify for an opportunity against The Hardys and the Raw Tag Team Championship.

Angle cited the duo's win-loss record as the reason.

The Golden Truth, per CageMatch.net, is 3-7 in their last 10 bouts. That includes a five-match losing streak. Truth and Goldust haven't wrestled on TV as a team in 2017 at all and haven't won since last October.

That hasn't stopped WWE from pushing folks up to contender status, though.

One's record is an aspect the company too often ignores. What's the point of all these matches each week if the results don't have an effect on one's standing? Defeats lose their meaning when they don't hold anyone back.

The Golden Truth will have to earn their chance at gold, as it should be.

8. An Introduction to Adam Cole

Could Adam Cole be headed to WWE or NXT?

The former Ring of Honor champion is now a free agent. As Michael Wonsover of ESPN.com noted, Cole's ROH contract ended on May 1.

Those familiar with his work to this point have to be intrigued by the idea of The One in a WWE ring. For everyone else, be sure to check out these clips of some of his best work.

• Adam Cole vs. Tommaso Ciampa: ROH Defy or Deny
• Adam Cole vs. Michael Elgin: ROH Border Wars 2012
• Adam Cole vs. Kevin Steen: PWG Mystery Vortex 2012
• Adam Cole vs. AJ Styles: ROH Extravaganza VI
• Adam Cole vs. Zack Sabre Jr.: PWG All-Star Weekend XII 

Note that three of those five opponents work for WWE now. Rematches with the likes of Ciampa, Steen (now Kevin Owens) and Styles promise to be great based on what they produced the first time around.

Cole's appeal may not translate to WWE, but it would sure be fun to see him try.

9. Missed Opportunity for Horror

The House of Horrors match at Payback bombed in many eyes. 

Fans fired off jokes on Twitter. Critics panned it.

Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt's battle inside a rundown house failed to reach its full potential, though, not because it was too weird, but because it wasn't weird enough.

WWE didn't go all out with the concept. The promos proved creepier and more creative than the climax.

When WWE sent out a survey about what fans wanted to see in the bout, Kate Foray of the Raw Breakdown Project ticked off "Sheeple," projected images and fire, while adding that she would also like to see snakes.

We got none of that.

A fridge smeared with a mysterious brown substance, a driverless tractor and various eerie dolls was good, but WWE could have done so much more with the House of Horrors. One has to fully embrace absurdity to make the most of a bout like that.

10. Lynch on the New PPV

WWE is getting a new addition the calendar. As first announced on the American Airlines Twitter account, an event dubbed "Great Balls of Fire" is coming in July.

Becky Lynch spoke for many of us when she responded to the PPV's name:

You know you've come up with something special when even the queen of puns is left speechless. 

The company's event-naming skills haven't been great recently. Fastlane and Roadblock never should have made it out of the meeting room, and Great Balls of Fire sounds like the kind of name you would get if you let a middle school class come up with it. 

Ryan Dilbert covers WWE for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @ryandilbert.